market cultivation of electric vehicles in china: a survey ... · 2011 8159 1850.51 2.46 0.044 2012...

sustainability

Article

Market Cultivation of Electric Vehicles in China:A Survey Based on Consumer Behavior

Shuxia Yang 1,2,*, Di Zhang 2,*, Jing Fu 2, Shujing Fan 3 and Yu Ji 2

1 Beijing Key Laboratory of New Energy and Low-Carbon Development, North China ElectricPower University, Beijing 102206, China

2 School of Economics and Management, North China Electric Power University, Beijing 102206, China;[email protected] (J.F.); [email protected] (Y.J.)

3 Kunming Power Supply Bureau, Kunming 650000, China; [email protected]* Correspondence: [email protected] (S.Y.); [email protected] (D.Z.); Tel.: +86-13681139160 (S.Y.)

Received: 15 September 2018; Accepted: 31 October 2018; Published: 5 November 2018��

Abstract: Faced with increasingly serious environmental problems, promoting EVs (electric vehicles)has become an important means of sustainable development. In 2017, EV sales accounted for morethan half of the world’s total. Although the speed of development is fast, the ownership remains low.In 2017, the market share of EVs in China was only 2.7%. At present, there are few studies on thepromotion of EVs. This study seeks to contribute to the organic combination of consumer behavioralcharacteristics and EV market cultivation. Based on the analysis of relevant research at home andabroad, the consumer behavior of EVs is investigated and the factor analysis is used to simplify thefeature categories, in order to obtain consumers’ behavior characteristics of EVs. According to thecharacteristics of consumer behavior of EVs, suggestions are put forward to cultivate EV market fromthe aspects of existent technology and potential future technology of EVs.

Keywords: sustainable development; electric vehicle; consumer behavior theory; market cultivation;separation of vehicle and electricity

1. Introduction

In recent years, various climate problems have become increasingly prominent due to theexcessive emission of greenhouse gases. From the perspective of sustainable development, China hasimplemented policies to purchase EVs without purchase tax [1]. Driven by policies, EV market hasdeveloped rapidly since 2011 in China, becoming the world’s largest EV market (Table 1). The sales ofEVs are fast growing, but the proportion of EVs is still low and the amount of ownership remains small.In 2017, the market share of EVs in China is only 2.7%. Policy promotion is difficult to sustain, and thedevelopment of EVs must respect market rules so as to achieve healthy development. Importantpolicies such as subsidy reduction and “double credit score” were successively introduced. “Doublecredit score” refers to the average fuel consumption points and electric vehicle points of passengercar companies, and the related accounts are calculated. “Double credit score” policy has higherrequirements for automobile manufacturers. The more electric vehicles that are produced, the higherand more favorable the score. Otherwise, there is a risk of suspension of business. EV points will be 10%and 12% respectively in 2019 and 2020, and the points will be announced separately after 2021. This willencourage the production of EVs and vehicles with low fuel consumption. Therefore, the developmentof EVs is facing an important shift from policy-led to market-driven [2,3]. The cultivation of the EVmarket is the only way.

Sustainability 2018, 10, 4056; doi:10.3390/su10114056 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability

http://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainabilityhttp://www.mdpi.comhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-7394-8888http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su10114056http://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainabilityhttp://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/10/11/4056?type=check_update&version=2

Sustainability 2018, 10, 4056 2 of 23

Table 1. 2011–2017 Sales of EVs (electric vehicles) in China.

Year Sales of EVs Year-on-YearGrowth (%)Total Car Sales

(104 Cars)Year-on-YearGrowth (%)

The Proportionof EVs (%)

2011 8159 1850.51 2.46 0.0442012 12791 56.77 1930.64 4.33 0.0662013 17600 37.60 2198.41 13.87 0.0802014 74763 324.79 2349.19 6.86 0.3182015 331092 342.86 2459.8 4.71 1.3462016 507000 53 2802.8 13.7 1.82017 777000 53.25 2887.89 3.04 2.7

Data source: China Auto Industry Association.

There is more and more research on EV market at home and abroad. Germany has studied theconsumption of EVs from the perspectives of psychology, environmental management, businessmanagement, and information technology. Holland, Norway, Denmark, and Sweden are allwell-developed countries in the EV market, and the relevant research is also more systematic [4]. In thefourth quarter of 2011, the German RWE group surveyed 6421 consumers from 12 global auto markets,including 502 from China. Research shows that Chinese consumers will be the second most willingto buy EVs after Indian consumers. The main motive in purchasing EVs of 40% consumers is energyconservation and environmental protection, and the most worrying thing for consumers is chargingthe vehicle [5]. Consumers in both China and U.S. prefer EVs with lower prices and subsequentuse costs, shorter acceleration time, and a quicker charging process [6]. Although governmentsubsidies can stimulate the purchase intention of EVs to a certain extent, the effect is relativelyweak; the effect of government subsidies is more obvious for the consumers with lower annualhousehold income, higher preferential policies and environmental awareness [7]. The reduction ofmonetary cost and purchase tax and the emission of low emission are the main factors to stimulatethe consumption demand of EVs [8,9]. Increasing the maximum travel distance, reducing chargingtime, and improving charging convenience can help to stimulate consumers’ purchase intention [10].The safety of EVs, after-sales service, service convenience, sales price and vehicle performance are thekey factors affecting the purchase decision of EVs. The price is the most important factor determiningwhether the consumers choose the EV or not [7,11,12]. The greater the age, the higher the probabilityof buying EVs [13]. Limited travel distance and longer charging time are the main reasons whyconsumers still hold a negative attitude towards EVs [10]. The environmental advantages of EVsdo not attract consumers enough, and consumers are concerned about the performance of EVs [14].Environmental attributes and fuel costs are the most important factors that affect most consumers’purchase of EVs [15].

Drawing on the successful experience of EV market cultivation in developed countries, China muststart with the aspects of subdividing the market, grasping the early consumers, respecting the marketlaw, giving priority to the cultivation of the hybrid power, improving the support policy of theindustrial chain, and increasing the support of the policy, so as to seek countermeasures for marketcultivation of EV industry [16]. At present, the EV users are mainly “innovators”. Along with theinnovators’ first entry, the “followers” (early adopters and early majority, etc.) will gradually enter.The EV manufacturers should dynamically adjust the management decisions according to theconsumption characteristics of the two types of users, and the R&D (research and development)input is more effective in promoting the innovators’ purchase intention, and the marketing inputis more effective in promoting the followers’ purchase intention [17]. The enterprise should take“self-construction” as the distinguishing variable of the target population, transmit “related” marketinginformation into different segmented market, and improve the consumer perception behavior controlwith detailed product related information. It is suggested that the relevant government departmentsshould actively guide the public perception of the far social distance to the benefits of EVs, stimulatethe public’s situational self-construction, transmit the related information, and then influence and


promote the consumer’s purchase intention of EVs [18,19]. With the formally introduced “doublecredit score” policy in 2017 and the further cut of national and local subsidies, the EV industry isaccelerating from policy-driven to market-driven, and consumer demand needs further stimulation.Consumers are the main subject of the market. Their consumption behavior and consumption attitudeaffect the development direction and development trend of the EV market [7].

At present, there are few systematic research results on consumer behavior of EVs. This researchonly focused on the factors that affect consumer decision-making. Although it is partly involved inconsumer behavior, it does not carry out a comprehensive study of consumer behavior. In academicresearch and practice, a consensus has been formed to strengthen the cultivation of EV market. In viewof this, there is still a lot of room for systematic research on the cultivation of EV market based on thedefinition of consumer behavior.

This article is to solve the following problems: (1) Characteristics of consumer behavior ofEVs in China. Combining the individual and psychological factors of consumers, starting from theaspects of consumer resources, needs and motivations, consumer perception, learning and memory,consumer attitudes, etc., this paper designs a comprehensive and scientific questionnaire for therequired information. The questionnaire is then distributed to actual consumers and those who havea tendency to purchase, while ensuring the reliability and validity of the collected questionnaire.(2) Market cultivation measures based on consumer behavior of EVs. Based on the perspective ofconsumer behavior, suggestions are put forward to cultivate EV market combined with the currentstatus of China’s EV market.

The paper is organized as follows: Section 2 is questionnaire survey and related processingmethods. Section 3 provides the data and analysis of consumer behavior of EVs in China. Section 4summarizes and discusses the results of the investigation. Section 5 provides research conclusions andsuggestions for the cultivation of EV market.

2. Methods

2.1. Survey

The survey in this paper is divided into four stages: in-depth interview, questionnaire design,presurvey, formal investigation.

(1) In-Depth Interview

In the initial stage of the survey, the in-depth interview method was used to explore the researchinformation, to understand the consumer behaviors related to EVs at present, to find out the directionthat needs to be investigated next, and to lay the foundation for the follow-up questionnaire design.

A total of 10 interviewees were selected during the in-depth interview phase, including actualusers of EVs, potential consumers of EVs, and people who have no plans to purchase cars for the timebeing. Through interviews, the following conclusions are drawn:

(1) Different consumers have different understandings of EVs, especially the difference between EVowners and those who have no need to purchase cars.

(2) The motivation for EV owners to buy EVs is mainly the license policy and subsidy policy,while other motivations are not clear.

(3) There is a widespread lack of understanding of EVs and charging piles.(4) It is considered that the EV has insufficient battery life and charging is not convenient.

(2) Questionnaire Design

The questionnaire of this study was designed with reference to the relevant theory of consumerbehavior, combined with the interview results obtained by the in-depth interview method, and refinedand revised based on the opinions of the automobile sales personnel and the automobile consumers.The content of the questionnaire is divided into 3 parts: the first part is the consumption of the


respondents to EVs, and the related questions were set around the actual consumption of EVs and thepurchase process; the second part is the basic situation of the respondents; and the third part is theLikert scale on the attitude of EV consumers, considering consumer needs and motivations, consumerperception, consumer attitudes and concerns. There are 19 questions, of which there are 35 items in theLikert scale. The design of the questionnaire takes full consideration of types and analysis methods ofdata needed, which takes the information as the starting point. Meanwhile, it ensures the rationality ofthe questionnaire design, the objectivity of the problem setting, and the privacy of the respondents.

(3) Presurvey

After the design of the questionnaire was completed, the presurvey was conducted so as tooptimize the questionnaire according to the results of the analysis. After the questionnaire wasdistributed through the network and interception, 140 presurvey questionnaires were collected, and thecollected questionnaires were processed for data to facilitate reliability analysis.

Reliability analysis is an effective analysis method used to analyze the stability and reliability of acomprehensive evaluation system. In the Likert scale of the questionnaire, the reliability analysis of35 items was analyzed with the Cronbach’s α coefficient method. The results were shown in Table 2,in which α = 0.945 and > 0.7, indicating that the internal reliability of the overall scale was ideal.

Table 2. Reliability Statistics.

Cronbach’s Alpha Cronbach’s Alpha Based on Standardized Items N of Items

0.946 0.945 35

(4) Formal Investigation

In order to study the behavior of EV consumers, this paper limits the respondents of thequestionnaire to the actual users of EVs and potential users with recent consumption trends. Therefore,only the target audience can fill out the questionnaire.

In order to facilitate the collection of data and later data processing, this study mainly throughthe network issued a questionnaire. The survey did not make a distinction in basic conditions likearea, age, occupation et al. According to the formula (1) for determining the sample size:

n =Z2 pq

E2(1)

When the confidence level is 95%, Z = 1.96, p takes 5%, q = 1 − p, error value E = 2.5%,the sample capacity is n = 292. At least 292 samples are required to ensure that the error rangeis less than 2.5% on the confidence level of 95%. In order to obtain the number of required samples,the questionnaire was published online from 3rd April to 20th May 2018, and the interceptionquestionnaire was issued. During the period, 344 questionnaires meeting the target conditions werecollected. After eliminating the invalid questionnaires, there were 343 valid questionnaires and theymet the sample size requirements.

2.2. Questionnaire Variable Processing

In order to reduce the complexity of the problems and overcome the correlation and overlapbetween the variables, this paper used factor analysis to simplify the feature categories of thebehavior of EV consumers. The analysis can use fewer variables to replace the original variables,and the variables after “dimensionality reduction” can also reflect most of the information inthe original variables. The analysis results show that most variables have high correlation andstrong linear relationship and it can extract several representative principal components. The KMO(Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin) test and Bartlett’s test of sphericity are performed on the data. The results areshown in Table 3. The observational value of the Bartlett’s test of sphericity is 10,407.800, and the


corresponding probability p is 0. If the significant level is 0.05, then the original hypothesis is rejected,and the alternative hypothesis is accepted, so the correlation coefficient matrix has a significantcorrelation with the unit matrix. At the same time, the greater the KMO value, the more suitable forfactor analysis. The KMO value of this study is 0.919 > 0.9, which is a very good representation, thus itis known that the original variable is suitable for extracting the principal component.

Table 3. KMO (Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin) and Bartlett’s test.

Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy 0.919

Bartlett’s Test of SphericityApprox. Chi-Square 10,407.880

df 595Significance. (p) 0

Using SPSS 22 to analyze the sample data, we can see the factors explaining the total varianceof the original variables (Table 4). The principal component analysis method is used to extract thefactors, and a total variance interpretation table including the eigenvalue, the variance contributionrate, and the cumulative contribution rate is obtained. It can be seen from Table 4 that the cumulativevariance contribution rate of 5 factors is 70.182%, indicating that these five principal componentscan generalize the meaning of 35 indicators. According to the variable correlation coefficient matrix,using scree plot analysis (Figure 1), through the analysis of scree plot, five factors were selected tobe the best.

Table 4. Total variance explained.

ComponentInitial Eigenvalues Extraction Sums of Squared Loading Rotation Sums of Squared Loading

Total % of Variance Cumulative % Total % of Variance Cumulative % Total % of Variance Cumulative %

1 12.553 35.866 35.866 12.553 35.866 35.866 7.500 21.430 21.4302 4.896 13.989 49.855 4.896 13.989 49.855 4.853 13.867 35.2973 3.858 11.023 60.879 3.858 11.023 60.879 4.717 13.476 48.7734 2.088 5.967 66.846 2.08 5.967 66.846 4.085 11.672 60.4445 1.167 3.336 70.182 1.167 3.336 70.182 3.408 9.737 70.182

Figure 1. Scree plot factor analysis.

2.3. Factor Analysis

After implementing a Kaiser-normalized orthogonal rotation on the factor load matrix using themaximum variance extraction method, through the collation and induction analysis of each component,the 5 factors that had been extracted are used to describe the 35 items measured in the scale. They canbe respectively named as the degree of understanding, purchase concerns, social status, consumer


perception and attitudes, as shown in Table 5. The reliability of five extracted factors was analyzedrespectively. The results ranged from 0.856 to 0.950, higher than 0.7, indicating that all five factorshad good reliability.

Table 5. Common factor extraction.

Factors Items Component 1 Component 2 Component 3 Component 4 Component 5 α

Degree ofunderstanding

Understanding of the price 0.777 0.220 0.127 −0.004 0.009

0.950

Understanding ofendurance mileage 0.814 0.272 0.070 0.081 –0.001

Understanding of thecharging speed 0.844 0.238 0.034 0.092 0.026

Understanding ofdriving experience 0.841 0.208 0.129 0.062 0.016

Understanding of the cost of use 0.883 0.135 0.031 0.067 0.074Understanding of the

subsidy policy 0.817 0.206 0.121 0.077 0.047

Understanding of charge pilecoverage rate 0.849 0.045 0.200 0.070 0.027

Understanding of the locationof the 4S store 0.823 0.024 0.186 0.160 0.031

Convenience to the 4S store 0.769 −0.057 0.226 0.214 0.075More optional vehicle models 0.605 −0.034 0.247 0.412 0.090

Often see advertisements 0.542 0.083 0.133 0.338 0.200

Purchaseconcerns

Troublesome charging 0.064 0.788 0.051 0.073 −0.002

0.912

Long charging time 0.152 0.821 0.045 0.044 0.179Unguaranteed battery safety 0.110 0.827 0.061 0.140 −0.057

Unguaranteed battery durability 0.134 0.878 0.014 0.038 0.120Used car may not preserve value 0.114 0.819 0.013 0.096 0.144

price performance ratio is nothigher than traditional

fuel vehicle0.342 0.613 0.187 −0.135 0.113

Not enough endurance mileage 0.206 0.708 0.138 −0.081 0.160

Social status

Bring social recognitionand status 0.163 0.102 0.779 0.242 0.265

0.945Improve the attitude of others

to yourself 0.255 0.058 0.829 0.174 0.222

Upgrade the social level 0.201 0.100 0.851 0.237 0.121make people more appreciative

of themselves 0.218 0.082 0.826 0.295 0.106

Show the taste of fashionand fashion 0.218 0.127 0.809 0.292 0.087

Consumerperception

Attractive appearance 0.123 0.126 0.555 0.613 0.084

0.907Attractive performance 0.149 0.022 0.398 0.724 0.164Attractive storage space 0.167 0.086 0.402 0.721 0.179

Attractive subsidy policy 0.100 0.229 0.263 0.648 0.287Meet the need of the vehicle 0.106 −0.039 0.375 0.702 0.271

Attitudes

Serious environmental pollutionat the moment 0.069 0.210 0.023 0.117 0.666

0.856

Consider environmental factorswhen purchasing products 0.017 0.031 0.278 0.144 0.747

EVs are the futuredevelopment trend 0.075 0.169 0.023 0.250 0.779

Have confidence in domestic EVs 0.178 −0.058 0.232 0.319 0.680Priority consideration of

the next car 0.279 −0.037 0.124 0.602 0.425

EVs are worth buying 0.232 −0.005 0.050 0.631 0.476Expect to get a

purchase proposal 0.029 0.237 0.229 0.159 0.619

3. Data

3.1. Descriptive Analysis of the Overall Sample

In the statistical results of questionnaires, there are contents without significant difference betweenthe sample statistics of potential consumers and actual consumers. The contents can be representedand explained by the results of the overall sample analysis, including nine areas of the consumptionintention of EVs, purchase process, consumer characteristics, degree of understanding, consumerperception, social status, consumer purchase attitudes, purchase concerns and purchase concernsunder different understanding levels.

3.1.1. Consumption Intention of EVs

Firstly, the consumption intention in the first part of the questionnaire (the consumption of EVs)is analyzed. In the questionnaire survey, only 28 people have purchased EVs, accounting for 8.16% of


all questionnaires. 315 people have not purchased EVs, accounting for 91.84% of all questionnaires.The main uses of EVs of the overall sample are shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Main uses of EVs.

Through the intuitive display of graphics, consumers mostly want to improve the comfortand convenience of the car, followed by the assisted driving technology, and the interest in theentertainment interconnection is low. The vehicle configuration technologies that consumers want areshown in Figure 3.

Figure 3. Technology for expecting car configuration.

According to the observation and analysis of Figure 4, the proportion of five passengers is thehighest, and the proportion of four people or more is higher than 75%. The passenger room of EVsmust be able to meet the multiple passenger need.

Figure 4. The main number of passengers in the car.

As shown in Figure 5, consumers are more inclined to small and medium-sized cars and sportutility vehicle (SUV). Among them, the proportion of SUV models is more than 36%, and the proportionof small and medium-sized cars is more than half. The largest market for EVs will be concentrated insmall and medium-sized cars. Small and medium-sized cars combine practicality and economy, whichare favored by most consumers.


Figure 5. The most likely type of car to buy.

Through statistics, as shown in Figure 6, consumers are most likely to buy plug-in hybridvehicles, followed by hybrids, and the last is pure electric vehicles. Combined with the above analysis,consumers believe that the endurance mileage of pure electric vehicles is not guaranteed. At the sametime, plug-in hybrid vehicles take the characteristics of energy saving and environmental protectioninto account, which is the main reason why consumers prefer plug-in hybrid vehicles [20,21].

Figure 6. The most likely EV type to be selected.

3.1.2. Purchase Process

The data in Table 6 shows that most consumers prefer the traditional 4S shop dealer pattern topurchase, but there are also quite a few respondents who are willing to choose a new pattern of “onlinepurchase + offline experience + delivery to the door”. There is always a market for demand, and a newconsumption pattern for EVs needs to be developed.

Table 6. Preferred purchase patterns.

Purchase Patterns Quantity Percentage

4S shop dealer 228 66.47%Online purchase + offline experience + delivery to the door 107 30.20%

Others 8 2.33%

The data in Table 7 shows that more than two-thirds of respondents are not aware of EVfinancial loans. About one-third of consumers who understand vehicle finance loans are not satisfied.The reasons for the specific dissatisfaction are yet to be investigated.

Table 7. Satisfaction degree of EV finance loan.

Satisfaction Degree of EV Finance Loan Quantity Percentage

Satisfied 74 21.45%Not satisfied 40 11.59%

Do not understand 231 66.96%


By comparing the data in Table 8, it is found that more than 65% of the respondents will sell EVsin the form of used cars.

Table 8. Post-purchase behavior.

Post-Purchase Disposal Quantity Percentage

Sell as a used car 228 66.47%Scrap treatment 48 13.99%

Transfer to others 29 8.45%Others 38 11.09%

3.1.3. Consumer Characteristics

In the second part of the questionnaire, the basic situation of consumers was analyzed. Sex ratiosand age ratios are shown in Figures 7 and 8, respectively.

Figure 7. Sex ratio.

Figure 8. Age ratio.

From the demographic characteristics of the effective questionnaire population, more male carowners pay attention to EVs, accounting for 76%. In terms of age, the proportion of young peopleaged 21–40 is 61%, which is the absolute main force of market consumption. A combined histogram ofthe age, education, and income of EV consumers is shown in Figure 9.

From the educational background and income ratios of people of all ages, it can be seen that EVconsumers have the following statistical characteristics: age 21–30 years old, undergraduate educationand above, middle income level (80,000–200,000/year/person); age 31–40 years old, college degree orabove, high income level and above (mean value is 200,000 and above/year/person).


Figure 9. Consumer characteristics.

3.1.4. Degree of Understanding

This paper investigates consumer’s understanding on the price, endurance mileage, chargingspeed, advertising, usage cost, subsidy policy, charging pile coverage, optional models, and 4S shoplocation of EVs. According to the intensity of the attitude of understanding, the attitude of consumersis quantified. The minimum score is 1 point (do not understand), the highest score is 7 points(fully understand), and the middle attitude is 4 points (general).

Through the comparison of the mean values of the data, it is found that the average level ofconsumers’ comprehensive understanding of EVs is 3.86, which is less than the average score of4 points. Overall, the consumer’s understanding of EVs is low. The consumer’s understandingof the location of the EV 4S store is 3.51, which is the lowest among the averages. Consumers’understanding of endurance mileage, charging speed, and subsidy policy are 3.97, 3.97, and 3.98,higher than the overall average of 3.86, but still fall below the general level. Consumers’ understandingof EV advertisements reached 4.15, higher than the average of 3.86. This shows that consumers havea certain understanding of EV advertising, but there is only an ambiguous concept understanding,lacking a deeper understanding. The understanding of the optional models of EVs is 3.90, which alsoreflects the shortage of EV models from the side, and consumers lack understanding of the EV models.

3.1.5. Consumer Perception

The consumer perception data in Likert scale is quantitatively analyzed, and the results are shownin Table 9. It is found that consumers have higher scores for subsidy policies, and subsidy policies havegreater appeal to consumers to purchase EVs. This will put a lot of pressure on the current subsidy cuts.On the other hand, it shows that the demand of consumers in the EV market is still driven by policyrather than spontaneous demand. The government should accelerate the EV market transition frompolicy-led to market-driven.

Table 9. Consumer perception.

Appearance Performance Storage Space Subsidy Policy Quality

Mean 4.43 4.77 4.58 5.18 4.86Standard deviation 1.643 1.619 1.624 1.578 1.534

On the other hand, consumers give the lowest scores for the appearance of EVs. Consumersbelieve that the EVs in the market are mainly “reconstructed” from traditional fuel vehicles. Althoughthey are EVs, the appearance is similar to that of traditional fuel vehicles. In particular, the face scoreof domestic EVs has no attractive highlights. In order to reduce the cost of EVs, car companies havechosen a cheaper original model to “renovate” into an EV [22].


According to the opinions of car owners and sales personnel, the storage space of the car is veryimportant for the comfort and convenience of the car, just like the decoration design of the house.The reasonable storage space design can greatly increase the convenience of the driver and passenger.However, in the survey results, consumers’ evaluation of storage space is not high. Because of itsenergy characteristics, EVs have fewer components such as engines, transmission shafts, and gearboxesthan conventional fuel vehicles. Therefore, it can make a considerable contribution to the luggagecompartment and the cockpit space, thereby increasing the storage space in the vehicle and improvingthe driving comfort and convenience.

3.1.6. Social Status

Through quantitative analysis, it is found that the comprehensive score of consumers’ satisfactionwith potential high-level demand is 4.04. Obviously, the EVs do not satisfy the social status ofconsumers, and the added value of EVs for consumers is lacking. Among social status, the scoresare only 3.81 and 3.88 in terms of improving the social level and making others more appreciative ofthemselves, which is significantly lower than the comprehensive score. In the case of the same overallsample size, the average standard deviation of each item in the social status factors is 1.74, which issignificantly higher than the standard deviation of the other four common factors, indicating thatpeople’s attitude towards the satisfaction of potential high demand is uneven. Compared with thehighly mature traditional fuel vehicle market, different styles, different prices and different productorientation of automobile brands abound. Consumers can meet their potential high-level demandsneeded through the consumption of different cars. At present, there are fewer models for EVs, and themarket is still in its infancy, which can only meet the low-level needs of consumers.

3.1.7. Consumer Purchase Attitudes

The consumer attitude in Likert scale mainly involves six items, and the six attitudes are depictedin the line chart (Figure 10). The corresponding data is shown in Table 10. Consumers believethat EVs are the future development trend, this attitude is the strongest, but consumers’ attitude ofpriority consideration of the next car is lower than other items. By observing the chart, these attitudesare related. Next, the categorical variable Spearman correlation analysis is performed on the six items.The P value between the six items is 0, less than 0.05, which is statistically significant. The correlationcoefficient is greater than zero, ranging from 0.227 to 0.779, indicating that there is a strong positivecorrelation between the six attitudes, that is, environmental pollution will have an impact on theattitude of consumers of EVs.

Figure 10. Consumer attitude.


Table 10. Consumer attitude scores.

Item Mean Standard Deviation

Serious environmental pollution at the moment 5.82 1.495Consider environmental factors when purchasing products 5.49 1.457

EVs are the future development trend 5.99 1.356Have confidence in China’s EVs 5.36 1.478

Priority consideration of the next car 4.73 1.501EVs are worth buying 4.95 1.462

The single sample t-test for six items was carried out. Consumers have the strongest attitudetoward the ‘EVs are the future development trend’ item, and the standard deviation is also the smallest,indicating that this is the consensus attitude of most people. However, the attitude of “the nextcar purchase will consider EVs” has the lowest level of attitude, indicating that consumers are stillunwilling to make decisions to purchase EVs. The standard deviation is the largest, indicating thatdifferent people have different attitudes towards this.

3.1.8. Purchase Concerns of Consumers

This article investigates consumer buying concerns in terms of charging convenience, chargingtime, endurance mileage, battery safety, battery durability, used car value preservation rate and priceperformance ratio. The mean analysis of seven purchase concerns of consumers is shown in Figure 11.The scale is a negative statement, the greater the mean, the higher the concern.

Figure 11. Degree of purchase concerns.

Consumers’ concerns about using EVs from strong to weak are: charging convenience, chargingtime, endurance mileage, battery durability, battery safety, price performance ratio, and used car valuepreservation rate.

The most obvious concern of consumers for EVs is the charging problem, combined with theLikert scale, consumer’s understanding of charging pile coverage is only 3.62. Consumers do notunderstand the charging facilities. Consumers do not think that there is convenient and fast chargingservice, but it does not mean that the charging facilities cannot meet the consumer demand for chargingservices. The main reason is that the consumers do not know the coverage of the charging facility andthe actual charging process and duration [23].

In terms of endurance mileage, consumers still have higher levels of concern. Some actualpurchasers gave their opinions. They mentioned that the endurance mileage was abnormally


attenuated, and the mileage was too short, which was inconsistent with the actual mileage indicatedby the manufacturer. Some consumers even need to pay high parking fees and charging fees to fullycharge the car. In the long run, this cost is not cheaper than driving a fuel car. If the consumer’sendurance requirements for the car cannot be met, it is necessary to frequently replenish the vehiclewith energy, which will greatly reduce the convenience of the car. With the rapid advancement ofbattery technology, the current endurance mileage of pure electric vehicles has reached the levelof 400km, which can basically meet the requirements of urban traffic. However, for long-distanceself-driving travel, the endurance mileage is still not nearly enough.

Consumers’ concerns about the battery safety and nonvalue preservation of EVs are mainly dueto the limited battery life. In the years when other parts of the vehicle are still in good condition,the battery will depreciate in advance, failing to reach the required endurance mileage, resulting indirect depreciation of EVs [24].

3.1.9. Purchase Concerns of Consumers under Different Levels of Understanding

In order to observe the different performances of different stages of the consumer group,the number of the top four items with the highest scores in the purchase considerations in the Likertscale of each respondent is counted, and the corresponding percentage is calculated. A combinedhistogram with the level of understanding and concerns of EV consumers, as shown in Figure 12.

Figure 12. Purchase concerns of users at different stages.

Figure 12 shows that from “don’t understand” to “basic understanding”, the proportion ofconsumers’ concerns has gradually increased, and from “basic understanding” to “fully understand”,the proportion of consumers’ concerns is gradually decreases.

3.2. Analysis of the Difference between Actual Consumers and Potential Consumers

3.2.1. Comparison of Information Acquisition Sources

Comparing and analyzing the information acquisition sources of actual consumers and potentialconsumers of EVs, the top five sources of information for actual consumers to buy an EV are: TV,car vertical website, manufacturer’s publicity and auto show, relatives and friends and video website.But the top five sources of information for potential consumers to obtain information are: TV, carvertical website, video website, official website, manufacturer’s publicity and auto show. As can beseen from the Table 11, whether in the actual consumer samples or the potential consumer samples,the proportion of TV options is more than 35%, and the respondents who choose the car vertical


website are close to 30%. At the same time, it can be seen that among the actual consumers’ informationacquisition channels, manufacturer’s publicity and auto show, as well as relatives and friends, alsoaccount for a large proportion of non-news advertising media. This is not consistent with the situationof potential consumers, indicating that consumer participation has increased during the actual purchaseprocess, and testing driving a car has become a necessary prerequisite for purchasing decisions.

Table 11. Sources of information acquisition.

The First The Second The Third The Fourth The Fifth

Actual consumer TV Car vertical website Manufacturer’s publicityand auto show Relatives and friends Video website

Potential consumer TV Car vertical website Video website Official website Manufacturer’s publicityand auto show

3.2.2. Comparison between Actual Purchase Price and Expected (Acceptable) Price

Analyze the ratios of the most likely price for potential customers to accept and the actualpurchaser’s purchase price. As shown in Figure 13, among the 28 actual EV purchasers, the proportionof people with a purchase price of 160,000–200,000 is the highest, at 46.43%, followed by110,000–150,000, accounting for 32.14%, and 210,000–300,000, accounting for 21.43%. Nearly halfof the people chose EVs with a price range of 160,000–200,000 in actual purchases. This is quitedifferent from the ratios shown by the potential consumer samples. In the potential consumer samples,the prices of EVs that consumers are most likely to purchase are mainly concentrated between 50,000and 300,000 Yuan, of which 110,000 to 150,000 Yuan are the most. This means that in the actualconsumption process, people’s acceptance of the price of EVs is increased, and quality is more likelytaken into account, and it may be the result of the influence of sales personnel.

Figure 13. Price comparison.

3.2.3. Comparison of Important Factors

Consumers pay attention to the following factors: appearance, performance, quality,subsidy policy, endurance mileage, charging speed, usage cost and charging pile coverage. Comparethe sample data of 28 actual consumers with those of 315 potential consumers, as shown in theFigure 14.

Attention of actual consumers on EVs from high to low: charging pile coverage, quality, endurancemileage, charging speed, usage cost, policy subsidy, performance and appearance; the rank of potentialconsumers: charging pile coverage, endurance mileage, quality, charging speed, policy subsidies,usage cost, performance and appearance. It can be seen that the actual and potential consumers’attention factors are slightly different. However, charging pile coverage, quality, endurance mileage


and charging speed are the four factors that they value. The ratio of the difference degree of the actualconsumer to the potential consumer is then depicted in the line Figure 15.

Figure 14. Comparison of important factors.

Figure 15. Difference ratio.

A positive percentage value means that the actual consumer attention is stronger than the potentialconsumer, and the higher the percentage value, the higher the relative emphasis; vice versa. Figure 15shows that the percentage of performance, quality, appearance, charging speed and charging postcoverage is positive. Among them, the percentage of performance, quality and appearance is higher,indicating that these factors are more important to actual consumers; policy subsidies, usage cost andendurance mileage are negative. The difference between the policy subsidy and the cost of use isrelatively large, indicating that these factors are more important to potential consumers. The absoluteratios of the difference between the charging pile coverage, the cruising range and the charging speedare close to zero. Combined with the analysis in Figure 14, it can be concluded that there are littledifference among these three factors between the actual and potential consumers. And they are themost important factors for consumers.


4. Results and Discussion

4.1. Aspects of EV Consumer Focus

From Figure 2 to Figure 9, it can be concluded that the proportion of five passengers in a familycar is the highest, and the proportion of four people or more is higher than 75%. Consumers aremore inclined to small and medium-sized cars and SUV models, of which the proportion of small andmedium-sized cars is more than half, and the proportion of SUV cars tends to exceed 36%; In termsof automobile configuration, consumers are most expecting the related configuration of improvingcomfort and convenience, followed by the configuration of assisted driving technology, and they havelow interest in the distribution of entertainment interconnection. In terms of the vehicle power type,consumers are most likely to buy EVs with plug-in hybrid power, followed by hybrid power, and thelast is pure electric vehicle, which is basically consistent with the results of the literature [25]. There ismore detailed research results obtained in this paper, which can provide a reference for the decision ofconsumers to purchase an EV product.

4.2. Notable Features of EV Consumers

From the basic information of 315 EV consumers in Figure 7, Figure 8 and Figure 9, young andmiddle-aged men aged 21–40 are the main consumers of EV market consumption. EV consumers havestatistical characteristics: age 21–30 years old, undergraduate education and above, middle incomelevel (80,000–200,000/year/person); age 31–40 years old, college degree or above, high income leveland above (mean value is 200,000 and above/year/person). This is the conclusion of this paper basedon 343 samples.

4.3. Positive Attitude but Insufficient Understanding

The attitude of consumers toward EVs and the future trend of EVs is relatively positive, which isin line with the research results of many consumers’ willingness to purchase [7]. However, consumerperception of EVs is still at an early stage and has not kept pace with the fast updating speed of newvehicle models. According to the analysis in Sections 3.1.2 and 3.1.4, the least of what consumers knowis the information about the EV 4S store. More than one-third of respondents indicated that they didnot understand the finance loan policy of EVs.

4.4. More Demand for EVs

EVs can only meet the basic needs of consumers, with little added value and cannot meethigh demands of consumers. The appearance design of EVs is not attractive and cannot show afashionable image. Consumers do not perceive the advantages of EVs such as flexible spatial design(Table 9). Previous studies on factors affecting the purchase of EVs have mostly focused on price,subsidies and environmental protection [7,8,11], ignored the appeal of the added value, appearanceand fashion of EVs to consumers.

4.5. More Misgivings

One of the reasons why consumers do not make a purchase decision is their concern about EVs.As consumer awareness of EVs increases, consumer concerns tend to rise first and then decline(Figure 12), in line with consumer psychology theory. This inspires us to design effective marketingtools to dispel potential consumers’ misgiving and promote potential consumers at different levelsof understanding to achieve a transition to actual users. From Figure 11, it can be seen that mostof them are concerning about charging and endurance mileage like inconvenient charging process,long charging waiting time, and unsatisfied endurance mileage, which is basically the same as theresults of the literature [5,6,10]. This shows that consumer concerns are an important factor affectingthe EV market. On the other hand, more than 65% of the respondents would sell EVs in the form of


used cars (Table 8), worrying about the battery performance loss and the not preserved value after use.This result is a relatively new finding. Previous studies did not consider the issue of used cars trading.

The research results of consumer perception and purchasing concerns make up for the vacancy ofthe previous studies, which not only explains the reasons for the positive attitude but negative willingto buy, but also provides the basis for the cultivation of the EV market.

4.6. Difference between Actual Consumer and Potential Consumer Behavior

This paper shows that the consumers and potential consumers have cognitive and behavioraldifferences in three aspects: information acquisition sources, price, and attention.

In the information acquisition sources of actual consumers or potential consumers, TV and carvertical sites account for a high proportion, the two information channels both accounted for morethan 30%, indicating more than 60% consumers get information on EVs from news and advertisement.The difference is that the actual consumer’s information acquisition channels are also mainly fromseveral types of non-news advertising media (manufacturer’s promotion and auto show, relativesand friends, etc.). However, the main source of information for potential consumers is still the mediamedium. This shows that in the actual purchase decision process, the participation of consumers isimproved, and testing driving EVs becomes a necessary prerequisite for purchasing decisions [26].Zhou et al thought that in the way of obtaining information from the EV market, 49.2% of therespondents believed that news and advertisements had the greatest impact on their purchase of cars,and the dissemination of media information allowed them to receive more information. 27.6% of therespondents believed that the manufacturer’s publicity and auto show had the greatest impact on theiraccess to information [25]. It can be seen that the media effect of the car exhibitions is very good inrecent years. 27.6% of the respondents got the car market information from their friends, which showsthat friends have a great influence on them. Although this paper differs from Zhou et al in the specificfigures, it shows the effectiveness of these sources of information. The way to acquire information cansupport subsequent selection of sales promotion methods, which is another achievement of this article.

The statistical results of Figure 13 show that the price of the actual purchase of EVs by consumersis higher than the expected acceptable price of potential consumers. The potential consumers whochoose between 110,000 Yuan and 150,000 Yuan (accounting for 37.39%) is the most. Nearly half ofthe people chose EVs with a price range of 160,000–200,000 in actual purchases. It means that in theactual consumption process, people’s acceptance of the price of EVs is increased, and quality is takeninto account. As the reference [27] shows, in the purchase decision of durable goods, consumers paymore attention to quality than price. In addition, higher than expected purchase prices may also be theresult of the influence of salesmen.

The comparison analysis between actual and potential consumers shows that the three factorsof charging pile coverage, endurance mileage and charging speed are not much different betweenactual and potential consumers, and they are the most important factors. The difference is that actualconsumers pay more attention to performance, quality and appearance; potential consumers paymore attention to policy subsidies and usage costs. After the consumer’s willingness to purchase istransformed into a purchase behavior, the factors of attention also change. The research results of thispaper have not been seen in other studies and will provide reference for the promotion of EV productsand the improvement of consumer satisfaction after purchase.

5. Conclusion and Market Cultivation Measures

5.1. Conclusion

Only a small number of consumers have bought EVs, most consumers maintain a wait-and-seeattitude. The general willingness to purchase EVs has not been translated into actual purchase behavior.Related enterprises need to know the factors affecting the buying behavior of consumers for EVs, so asto take effective measures to promote the purchase of EVs. Government subsidies have weakened the


role of the market itself, resulting in the lack of consumer awareness of the EV itself and its benefits,which have become an obstacle to the selection and purchase of EVs by a large number of consumers.Correctly guiding consumers’ perception and effectively stimulating consumer purchase intention ofEVs are important issues to enhance the development of EV market.

Concerns and higher requirements for the use of EVs are the main obstacles to consumerconsumption behavior of EVs. There are many doubts about the technology reliability of theEVs excepting the high cost. At the same time, concerns are also expressed about the high costof maintenance, the popularity of maintenance points, the improvement of infrastructure and thepower supply support. Consumers also hope that EVs have more ideal design. Enterprise marketersmust pay enough attention and reduce consumer concerns in order to have a place in the competitiveautomobile market to create good conditions for EVs development.

Consumers have certain typical characteristics and have their own requirements for the price,car models, power, and number of passengers. The automobile manufacturer should change in waysthat do not divide segment market, design the car according to the characteristics of the target market,and launch more desirable models.

The differentiated cognition and behavior of actual consumers and potential consumerssuggests that related enterprises should view marketing and advertising campaigns as a continuous,gradual process. In view of the different stages of the promotion of electric vehicle products, promotioncampaigns should be carried out with different strategies. The market should be widely publicizedand broadened in the early stage and persuasive information should be conveyed in detail inthe medium term. In the later stage, it is necessary to adopt a diversified strategy based on thedifferentiation of the audience and focus on integrating marketing communication. At the same time,in the processes of design and production of electric vehicle products, we should pay attention to theimprovement of performance and quality control and improve the actual consumer satisfaction afterpurchase in a multitude of ways.

5.2. Market Cultivation Measures

5.2.1. Market Cultivation Measures Based on Existent EV Technology

According to Rogers’ diffusion of innovations theory, new product will be diffused frominnovators to early adopters, early majority, late majority and laggards. According to market shareindicators, there are already innovators in China. The goal of market cultivation is to achieve instanteffect and diffuse to early adopters and the early majority as soon as possible. Therefore, suggestions areput forward to cultivate early adopters and early majority market based on existent technology of EVs.

(1) Strengthen Charging Pile Construction and Integration Operation

Long charging time, inconvenient charging, and short cruising range have always been concernsof EV consumers. In order to easing consumer concerns about charging, increase the constructionof charging facilities, increase the coverage of charging facilities, and increase the utilization rate ofcharging facilities have been the top priorities of China’s EV market promotion. By the end of 2017,the number of public-type charging facilities in China had reached 213,900, and the number of privatecharging facilities equipped with EVs was about 231,800. Due to the long charging time of the EV,these charging facilities cannot meet the demand.

Lay out the charging station (pile) rationally. Increase charging facilities and access to higher-levelpower-related facilities in all types of parking lots (including residential areas) that have been built;construct charging facilities in large public building parking lot and social public parking lot; layout fastcharging piles in shopping malls, entertainment venues and large temporary parking lots reasonably;it is necessary to build charging piles because of the rapid growth of private EVs; provide exclusivecharging infrastructure for official vehicles, special vehicles, employee vehicles, etc., and relatedfacilities for accessing superior power supplies in conditional parking lots; gradually promote public


charging infrastructure planning from the central city to the suburbs, from the “urban priority todevelop” area to the general area.

Encourage private charging pile sharing. Synchronously build a special transformer for chargingfacilities with the residential quarters and lay the power supply line of the charging facility to eachparking space and leave an interface. The residents can purchase the charging pile by themselves.The EV owners can obtain the location of the shared charging pile can be seen on the charging pilesharing APP, in which detailed and accurate charging pile information is introduced, and there is acorresponding scientific and convenient charging and settlement method. The sharing of chargingpiles can greatly increase the charging pile coverage, increase the charging pile usage rate, and reduceconsumer concerns about charging.

Build large automatic quick change charging stations in the center of the transportation hub.Large-scale commercial vehicles for urban public transportation and sanitation are charged at differenttime. Consider layout battery-changing power stations for taxi charging. The battery quick-changemode is the best choice, so that urban public transportation, sanitation large commercial vehicles,taxis, etc., are not compatible with small-sized vehicles for charging facilities to achieve convenientcharging purposes.

In the design of the charging pile, the user experience needs to be fully valued. Provide convenientpayment and settlement methods, use corresponding marketing means for charging consumption,encourage market competition, and stimulate the technology advancement through the natural law ofsurvival of the fittest. Provide recreational facilities at the public charging station to avoid the boringwaiting of the charging owner, making the charging process more enjoyable.

Integrate the location of the charging facility into the navigation system of the EV. The systemcollects the dynamic information of the national public charging pile and supervises its operation.It gives the charging suggestions along the way for the driver to choose, which will hope to alleviatethe trouble of the difficulty of finding a charging pile of EV owners.

Formulate preferential policies to encourage all parties in the society to actively participate in theconstruction and operation of charging facilities. Through the implementation of financial subsidypolicies and other preferential policies, enterprises and individuals will be attracted to provide fundsor land, invest in construction and participate in the operation of charging infrastructure.

(2) Preferential Electricity Price Guidance

High charging costs are another important factor affecting the use of EVs. In 2014, China began touse price leverage to promote the promotion of EVs and implemented a supportive electricity pricepolicy for EVs charging facilities. Implement preferential price for operational and centralized chargingfacilities and charge at large industrial electricity price. Electricity for facilities of residential area ischarged at residential electricity prices. At the same time, the electricity consumption of the vehiclecharging facilities is charged according to the peak and valley time-of-use electricity price to encourageusers to reduce charging costs.

At present, the main reason for the high charging cost is that the parking fee and the electricitybill are high, and the peak and valley time-of-use electricity price is not well implemented. Firstly,actively connect the power supply department, implement a variety of preferential policies such aslow valley electricity price, and encourage users to charge during non-peak hours. Introduce variouspackages such as “unlimited charging” for monthly subscriptions for EVs users and implement furtherpreferential electricity prices for household EVs charging to encourage home charging. Secondly,reduce the parking fee for the charging facility, thereby reducing the charging cost.

(3) Publicity and Promotion

In view of the fact that consumption perception of EVs is low, consumers’ perception and attitudetowards EVs will be affected through various channels, so that consumers’ consumption behaviorof EVs will be changed to make consumers be willing to accept EVs, so as to cultivate the vibrant


market demand. To change consumers’ perceptions and attitudes, the following aspects need tobe considered. Seize TV as the main channel for obtaining automobile information. Directed bythe government, nonprofit advertising on EVs can be launched on suitable TV channels. And theadvertising creativity should target males aged 20–40 with bachelor’s degree or above so that potentialconsumers can have a more intuitive understanding of EVs. Enhance the exposure level of EVsand enhance the learning and memory of consumers by making use of the appeal of entertainmentprograms. Choose representative brands and distribute information in entertainment venues in festivaland holiday, answer questions, and show the characteristics and advantages of EVs. Set up electric carrental points in tourist attractions, and design EVs with advertising features to make EVs a mobileadvertisement. In the main residential areas, densely hanging EV banners to provide visual stimulationand strengthen the imprints of EVs.

(4) Let More Consumers Experience Electric Vehicles

Potential consumers have a lack of understanding of EVs and EVs are fundamentally differentfrom traditional vehicles in terms of power sources. Consumers must be provided with opportunitiesto fully understand and experience in order to make them proactively accept EVs. Because of thelarge area, the traditional 4S shops are mostly concentrated in the suburbs and are far away fromthe crowded areas. It is inconvenient for consumers to participate in experience activities. Therefore,it is recommended that car sales companies put some of the exhibition cars in crowded areas, so thatconsumers can learn about EVs in their daily leisure shopping. In order to encourage consumersto participate in activities and increase the number of participants in the event, small prizes can beawarded, and interaction activities can be increased.

Excepting static display experiences, consumers are encouraged to conduct test driving activitiesbecause the car is a product with dynamic performance. Through the driving experiences, consumerscan more fully and deeply understand EVs. Similarly, when setting up the test-taking activities, it isnecessary to fully consider the participation convenience and the feeling of the consumers and conductstandardized and professional service marketing training for the relevant staff.

Correspondingly, in the process of purchasing EVs, we can break the sales pattern of traditional4S stores, and adopt the new pattern of ‘offline experience + online car purchase + service stationdelivery’. This will enable consumers to understand EVs in all aspects, improve the understanding ofEVs, and thus narrow the distance between EVs and customers.

(5) Organize Electric Vehicle Social Activities

The potential consumers have a low level of understanding of EVs as a whole, and early adoptersand early majority have a wide range of social networks and a large number of information channels.The publicity and promotion alone does not guarantee the consumer stickiness. It also requireslarge-scale social activities to active consumers. In combination with the current market situation,there are two suggestions: First, hold the national EV competition. On the one hand, it can promote thetechnological progress of EVs through competitions. On the other hand, it can show endurance,climbing ability, etc., highlighting the selling points of EVs. Meanwhile, it can lead the socialtrend, change people’s traditional perception of cars, develop a new culture of car and increasethe attractiveness of EVs. Second, under the background of increasingly prominent environmentalissues, EV manufacturers organize large-scale public welfare activities with the theme of protectingthe environment, energy conservation and environmental protection. Manufacturers took the first steptowards environmental protection, thereby establishing a low-carbon and energy-saving social imageand attracting consumers to purchase EVs for more advanced demand motives.

5.2.2. Market Cultivation Measures Based on Future EV Technology

As the market spreads, more and more consumers recognize and begin to accept EVs. The basisof market cultivation measures should turn from existent technology to potential future technology.


(1) Separation of Vehicles and Electricity

EVs face two major problems from the survey results. First, the price is too high, the priceperformance ratio is low, and the value is not preserved. At the same time, the policy subsidy isfacing a problem of declining. The second is the battery problem of trouble charging, life limitation,and long charging time. In order to solve the main contradictions, it is recommended to carry out"separation of vehicle and electricity”, that is to purchase EVs, rent batteries, and provide batteriesexchange services from the perspective of long-term development of the EV market. In the processof using EVs, consumers use batteries of the battery company and need to pay rent according to theamount of electricity used. Consumers can charge by themselves or they can go directly to the powerstation to replace the full battery. This can well solve two major problems faced by EV consumers.

(2) Intelligence of EV

Consumers have unmet potential high-level needs, and actual consumers pay more attentionto EV qualities. EVs are not well positioned to meet the needs of the social status of consumers,and the added value of EVs for consumers is low. The difference in configuration is an importantmeans to reflect the differences between different car models. EVs in the future should be equippedwith high-tech configuration, so they can reflect the image of environmental protection, technologyand fashion of EVs in the configuration. They can meet the high-level needs of consumers for loveand belonging, self-esteem and self-realization. In terms of technology configuration, automobilecompanies should focus on technologies and equivalent assisted driving technologies that enhancecomfort and convenience. With the rapid development and application of the Internet and big data,EVs must keep up with the trend of automation and intelligence, and more attention should be paid tothe driving experience in automobile manufacturing. EVs and traditional fuel vehicles are significantlydifferentiated by the integration of the latest technology and superior experience.

(3) Unconventional Human Design

There are many unsatisfied aspects of consumer perception. Most of them are expected to haverelevant configurations for improving comfort and convenience. The EV design should emphasizehumanized design to enhance the comfort of use. EVs should have a completely new independentdesign, abandoning the design habits of traditional fuel vehicles. Because EVs do not need to leavea lot of space for the engine, it can improve the space utilization of new EVs and driving comfort.Make the product or brand a unique image, inject a unique corporate culture into the brand, and makethe appearance and after-sales service of the product have distinctive characteristics. In view of thelarge number of passengers traveling in the car, the space for the design of the vehicle is emphasized.For issues family planning, it is recommended to introduce models with more seats.

(4) Accelerate the Integration of Transportation and Energy

Fast and convenient charging is the eternal theme of EVs. Make full use of highway pavementresources and innovate the “highway + photovoltaic” pattern to achieve the combination of roadaccess and power generation. It will supply green energy while meeting the driving function and openup a new format for the future “super highway” cross-border integration. Photovoltaic pavement willpromote the development of electrification and intelligent transportation, enriching people’s travelexperience. It will make EVs get rid of battery constraints and achieve transportation sustainability.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization, S.Y.; Data curation, S.F., D.Z. and J.F.; Formal analysis, S.Y., D.Z.and J.F.; Methodology, D.Z., J.F.; Software, S.Y. and D.Z.; Visualization, J.F., Y.J.; Writing—original draft, S.Y.;Writing—review & editing, D.Z., J.F., S.F. and Y.J.

Funding: This research received no external funding.

Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interests.


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© 2018 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open accessarticle distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution(CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

http://dx.doi.org/10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMM.496-500.2822http://dx.doi.org/10.19311/j.cnki.1672-3198.2018.15.001http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/sus.2017.29102.ershttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0167-7187(01)00088-1http://creativecommons.org/http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

Introduction Methods Survey Questionnaire Variable Processing Factor Analysis

Data Descriptive Analysis of the Overall Sample Consumption Intention of EVs Purchase Process Consumer Characteristics Degree of Understanding Consumer Perception Social Status Consumer Purchase Attitudes Purchase Concerns of Consumers Purchase Concerns of Consumers under Different Levels of Understanding

Analysis of the Difference between Actual Consumers and Potential Consumers Comparison of Information Acquisition Sources Comparison between Actual Purchase Price and Expected (Acceptable) Price Comparison of Important Factors

Results and Discussion Aspects of EV Consumer Focus Notable Features of EV Consumers Positive Attitude but Insufficient Understanding More Demand for EVs More Misgivings Difference between Actual Consumer and Potential Consumer Behavior

Conclusion and Market Cultivation Measures Conclusion Market Cultivation Measures Market Cultivation Measures Based on Existent EV Technology Market Cultivation Measures Based on Future EV Technology

References

market cultivation of electric vehicles in china: a survey ... · 2011 8159 1850.51 2.46 0.044 2012...

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